Can I deny that I love you?
by Endless Waltz
Summary: Mai goes out clubbing one night, but all she can think about is Jonouchi. Could the lone wolf really be in love? And if she is, how can she know for sure? Please R
1. The peacock

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-gi-oh or it's characters. Takahashi does.

Mai had decided to go clubbing in Domino on Saturday night. Mai decided she wanted to get out more ever since the Duelist Kingdom. Going there was like a self-discovery. She discovered that she no longer had to be alone, that there were people there waiting for her. Battle city just strengthened her trust. She had spent her life in hate, but Yugi and Anzu turned that around. And then, there was…him. "No." Mai said to herself quickly knocking the idea out of her head.

With a clear head and open mind, she stepped into the first club. A large neon sign hung over the building reading: CLUB MIDNIGHT. The glowing lights of the club traveled in every imaginable direction. She would get up and dance with whoever had their eyes on her, which turned out to be a good many.

Throughout the crowded club, the lights flashed but nothing was fazing her, until one point. As she was still in motion, her head kept filling with Jonouchi's image. With that little grin he would always wear even when he would go through hell. Her body moved on it's own, but her mind kept racing.

The thoughts kept looking to the past. She saw herself back at Pegasus's kingdom. From the first moment she saw Jonouchi, she thought he was just another amateur kid, just another pushover. At first, he was just some roadblock. Then she had dueled him and had seen that he was still just a pushover, but he left her with a mystery she couldn't solve. Then she remembered how she would still do something as under-handed as use Ryuzaki as a pawn. Jonouchi still came out on top, but not because of his abilities, but his sheer courage. Her final memory was giving him the glory card. There was no reason for her to even be on the island, let alone to give up her card. She had said she gave it to help Shizuka, but she still wondered, wondered if that was the only reason. Before she could continue to think, reality sunk back in. Her body stopped moving as she fell to the floor. She staggered up and tried walking to the bar. She had a slight headache from all her thoughts, but she still thought about their greatest and almost last moments together. During her duel with Malik, she was completely trapped. But Jonouchi even risked not only his seat in the finals, but his very life, just to try and save her. At that moment, their egos didn't matter. She got the memory out of her head and sat down at the bar, still feeling the now extreme headache.

"Miss, I know a drink that can help you with that headache." A man at the bar said.

"Thanks." Mai replied as the man ordered her a drink. She looked at her watch which read: 10:34. The man sat her drink next to her, but she didn't drink it. "Is there something that's bothering you?" the man asked.

"No…well, there's this guy…" Mai replied with a dizzied sense.

"Oh, then you're in love? Then why are you at a place like here?" the man asked.

"I'm not in love!" Mai exclaimed. "The guy's a jackass. He's crude and rowdy and an ego freak."

Mai suddenly began calming down and her tone changed. "But, on the other hand, he's caring and courageous and loyal and I feel warm and loved whenever I'm around him."

"So this guy is a dog?" the man replied as she smirked.

"I just keep trying to tell myself that I don't love him, but whenever I do, I get these headaches. I'm sorry, you bought me this drink and I haven't even taken a sip, how rude of me." Mai said as she took a swig of the drink. She almost gagged it out, but she swallowed it.

After she did, she started to fell dizzy, as if the world around her kept spinning. The man said, "Don't worry. You won't have to worry about whoever you love for quite a while." She heard these words and then, she lost consciousness, afraid of what would happen next.

What will happen now? Please review. This is only my second Yu-gi-oh fic.


	2. The dog

I don't curse much, but I have to say I've been a jackass. I'm serious here. I have to finish this story with commitment. The story goes on! Sadly, the story is only two chapters. Anyway, I finally updated and here is the conclusion.

* * *

Jonouchi was sitting in his room with Honda. His dad was drunk asleep, so he didn't need to worry of bothering him. Even though it was rare that he could spend time in his own house, Jonouchi wasn't going to stay long. He had a date. "Jonouchi, why do you have that look on your face? You get to actually go on a date with Miho (see Yugioh, volume 1.But Miho is a shy girl Honda has the hots for. also, in one anime version, she is a major character about as big as Bakura, but in that she falls for him.), a girl who I don't even have a chance with, and you don't seem satisfied. Why?" Honda asked. Although Jonouchi had a better chance with women, neither had ever come close to a date. This was mostly due to their obsessive perversions.

"Well, I've been thinking…" he began to reply.

"That's a big change." Interrupted Honda, who was swiftly hit in the back of the head for it.

"Well, there's…uh…this girl. She disappeared a while back and I haven't seen her. She seemed to act a little stubborn and egotistic, but, somehow, I…I miss her." Jonouchi stuttered in reply. There was an awkward silence between them until Jonouchi picked up his phone and dialed a number. He began Speaking to someone on the other side of the phone. "Hey, Miho, I know that we had plans, but I can't go with you tonight. I'm sorry. But I do have another guy who'll give you a good time…okay, thanks. Honda will meet you at 7. Bye." He hung up the phone.

"Jonouchi, don't be an idiot. I'm grateful, but…." Honda began.

"Just shut up! I need some down time, okay? That's all. Just go have a good time." Jonouchi said as he walked out of his apartment.

When Jonouchi said he wanted some down time, he meant he felt like gambling. He was a card-holder at a nearby Pachinko parlor. He had left the apartment at 6, and left the parlor after a hot night at 20 after 10. Again, for him, a hot night meant he came out after a few hours with about 200 yen profit. He wasn't cooled down enough yet, so he decided to go for a walk. Though he'd grown up with it, the hot Japan air made his clothes stick. Sweat was all over his face. But inside, he was as cold as the ice of the mountains. Still off searching for the thing he couldn't find.

He walked down a neon street and saw a sign for a bar. "Club Midnight? Sounds like a crappy nightclub Mai would like. Still, I might go there if she wanted to. Oh well." Jonouchi said to himself as he kept walking. He looked at his watch. It read: 10:40. He looked up from his watch when he heard the ear-piercing scream of a woman. But only he followed it.

He dashed deep into an alley and found a man trying to strip the woman of her clothing. She could speak no more. Her flustered face showed that she had been drugged. Jonouchi couldn't stand a low-life like that. With a swift, back-head kick, the man fell forward. It was too dark to see most of her body, or much of her face even. He couldn't tell a thing about what the man looked like, but he couldn't have cared less.

The woman couldn't open her eyes. The man chuckled and got up. "You want to mess with me, you kid? I'll just have to teach you something." He said as he pulled out what appeared to be a gun. Jonouchi didn't move. The man put a cigarette in his mouth and pulled out a lighter. He lit it to show his face. He tossed the lighter to the side and the flame showed a glimpse of the woman's face. Her lips were full and had an angled face. The top of her face had messy blonde hair over it. Jonouchi thought she might be an out-of-towner. He didn't care though. He had to protect women from creeps like this.

"Look, go ahead and shoot me, but don't mess with innocent people. Now, I won't settle for what you're doing!" Jonouchi yelled as the woman began to come to her senses. She could see almost clearly in the dark. "You….thanks…Kat…suya." She said faintly, but soon felt her adrenaline rushing through her body.

They both were too busy with each other in their stand-off to notice the world around them. "That's it. I'll end this now! This is a silenced Beretta. Nobody will hear a thing. No make your peace in he…" The man ranted as her felt a cold metal tube on the back of his neck. The woman had gotten up and held it to his neck.

"Alright, now you're going to drop your gun and then turn around." The woman said. The man was revealed as a coward, dropped his gun and they both turned like she had said. "Now, run. Run as fast as you can before I change my mind and shoot." He did so and was gone with the night. Almost as soon as he was gone, she collapsed, but not before Jonouchi caught her.

"Thanks back there." He said. "Now, you're pale, so lets get you into the light." She leaned on his arm as they walked out. Before fully in the light, he realized how she was topless. He put his jacket over her and she fit her arms through it. They walked out onto the sidewalk. The neon finally revealed one another. Their eyes widened as they verified who they were.

"Mai! It is really you. Oh, it's been so long since I've seen you." Jonouchi yelled.

"I'm glad to see you too." Mai replied, not worrying about how weak she was. He hugged her as strong as he could. They felt like crying from how happy they were from the reunion. But before they could catch up, Mai began to collapse again. She was caught again.

"Mai, I better get you home. My dad's gone, so I can take you by my dad's apartment. Just rest a bit. I'll grab a cab." Jonouchi said as he stuck his hand out for a cab. When one stopped, he helped her in. She was semi conscious when he closed the door. He told the driver a destination and he began to drive. Mai was asleep through the whole drive. When they reached the apartment complex, the driver said "That'll be 400 yen."

"400? What a rip. We only traveled for three minutes. Oh well." Jonouchi complained as he handed him the money. "Mai, you owe me a little money."

She replied half-asleep, "Katsu, you're the one who won DK. You've got the money, remember." She finally awoke as she was able to get out of the cab on her own. They stepped out and he helped her up the stairs. He opened the door to his apartment and she walked in. They went into his room and he left. He quickly brought back a cup of ramen and some chopsticks. She stuffed her face with it.

Finally, she was fully recovered; she told him all that had happened. Ho w she was drugged while in the club, how he tried to abuse her, but she left out the part about the guy she couldn't keep out of her head. Weird why she would leave something like that out, isn't it? After finishing the ramen, he told her how he wished all these months that he could see her again.

Finally, they realized that they were both deep in one another's minds. "I think I'm starting to get it. We both went searching for something, but we found each other. Funny how life works that way." Mai said.

"Y'know, times like these make me think, what if life wasn't just a series of chance and choice. What if there was something that was almost like…" Jonouchi began saying.

"Like fate." Mai finished him. Compassion filled her eyes. "Katsu…" She put her hands to the sides of his cheeks. She began to lean in, but Jonouchi got to her first. They kissed as deep and passionate as they could, for, in a single second, Mai fell forward and took Jonouchi with her. She hit the floor and said "Katsu…I'm tired." They both fell asleep there without argument or another word. They slept that night in the arms of their lover.

* * *

As a note, that end joke was not original. It was taken from Princess Ai. Another thing I don't own. Anyway, since I might not be writing for a while, I just wanted to let you know, right now, I'm single. Later. 


End file.
